Lieutenant Commander Alex Flynn

Name Alexandra Flynn

Position Executive Officer

Rank Lieutenant Commander

Basic Info
Personality
History

Character Information

Sex		Female
Species		Human
Age		42
Summary		A survivor of combat in the Dominion War as a child, Alex is a little unusual, but a very effective officer. She went straight from the academy into diplomatic security, which expanded into a successful career as an investigator and later as a security and tactical chief. Single, never married. Looking. Many bad habits.

Physical State

Height		177cm
Hair Color		Dark Brown
Eye Color		Hazel
Physical Description		Alex has been called slovenly, graceless, coarse and unladylike. She would not disagree with any of these observations. Her years in security have given her a tough physicality that any with similar skills would recognise. Her dress sense has been compared to that of prisoners in rura penthe. She is clumsly and often bumping some part of herself on something. She never knows know quite what to do with herself physically, though she's comfortable with that, it just looks unusual. Her legs are long and she's naturally quite slender. She has her fathers eyes and everything else of her mothers. She smokes like a chimney and drinks like a fish. The smoking is an unconventional but effective treatment for an inflicted addiction she suffers as a result of exposure to a Breen weapon. While one every few days would suffice, her addictive tendencies mean she usually has at least five a day.

Family

Personality & Traits

General Overview		Alex is honest, attentive, trustworthy, messy, offbeat and a little self-destructive. It would be unfair to say she were a snob or an elitist, though these traits would seem plausible to strangers. Alex is almost utterly without pretention. She speaks without subtext, and confronts truths out in the open. If there is an elephant in the room, she will not sit until it has been addressed. Often she will make her observations without request, in a way that can be either disconcerting or incisive. She does not seem to have a lot of interest or time for small talk or unproductive interaction. Though she does not seem inherently interested in most people, she is always learning from them. She is more of a listener than a talker, and standing around silently is how she learns. She learns from behaviours, and doesn't think much of words. Her sense of humour is dark and dry. She could be called a slob. Her manners are not really up to scratch, and her language can be appalling. She always behaves herself when appropriate or necessary, however. Though she seems to have a dislike of it when first received, she handles criticism effectively and constructively. She has an active imagination and is frequently seen daydreaming or scribbling. She prefers pen and paper to pads, and always has a supply replicated. She seems to have only three possessions, aside from her clothes, a model of a Miranda-class starship, a lighter with the initials L.S. etched into it, and a beaten old brown leather suitcase.
Strengths & Weaknesses		STRENGTHS Alex can be doggedly single-minded when something gets her attention. She works to the detriment of almost every other area of her life when necessary, she has been known to stay awake for days when investigating or sorting through issues. She is quite talented at making connections most don't see, and thinking outside the box. Her understanding of others allows her to give them appropriate encouragement and direction. She meets or exceeds the standard psychological performance indicators for an Executive Officer. She manages and delegates effectively, keeps control of discipline and maintains a healthy authority and distance from those around her, yet is not an alien or uncomfortable presence. She maintains sufficient friendships to avoid reclusive tendencies, but rarely adds to an initially acquired group of friends. Seems to show a preference for Engineers. Her ability to empathise makes her an excellent mediator and judge of character. Alex is tough. Spiritually, emotionally, physically. It takes quite a bit to rattle her, and she seems to keep her cool in the worst situations. Weaknesses: Her personality is addictive, though she's managed to keep this from affecting her work. She sometimes struggles to take care of herself, forgetting to eat, shower, or even change into a clean uniform some days. She has no patience for stupidity or incompetence and can be undiplomatic in her approach to dealing with such individuals. Alex has a long history of nightmares, somnambulism, insomnia, and disturbed sleep. It is recommended that she see a counsellor regularly if these issues worsen.
Ambitions		Alex does not seem to have many ambitions. She has had a handful of relationships she seemed keen on continuing, but circumstances broke them apart. She would make a good mother, and is aware of this. She seems uninspired by the concept of commanding her own ship, hoping if possible to pass straight through to the Admirality, where she can manage more than the efforts of a single ship.
Hobbies & Interests		Alex has deliberately avoided holodecks for most of her adult life, likely due to her tendencies towards addictive behaviour. She enjoys simple activity, a dart board or a deck of cards can keep her entertained for hours. She likes listening to and attending music, and has tried many different instruments, but never really got the hang of any. She is a fan of cinema and films, particularly Andorian war epics and Bajoran period dramas, as well as anything made on or near Earth with an actual camera. Alex likes to visit exotic locations and explore. She also likes to drink, which is, in itself, when done in the proper Scottish way, an activity.

Personal History

Alex was born in Edinburgh, but did not spend particularly long there. Her infamous mother, then a graduate student at the University of Edinburgh, soon accompanied her new husband, a Starfleet Lieutenant Commander to his new post as executive officer on the USS Saavik, a Nebula-class starship on a five year mission within Federation space.

Alex was officially raised by her mother, but once she could walk and talk, Starfleet childcare specialists did most of the work. Her mother was able to conduct much of the work involved in her newly awarded Doctorate, and was not about to let a child interfere with such an important stage of her career.

About a month before Alex's fifth birthday, her father was promoted to CO of the Saavik when the Captain died in her seat of a powerful stroke. After a few months of the new arrangement, command was transferred to Admiral Toh, and Commander Flynn was given command of the USS Scorpius, an older Constellation-class vessel dedicated to border control. The lack of scientific amenities available to her mother frustrated her greatly, leading to a dramatic increase in tension between husband and wife. They soon seperated when it was revealed that she was pregnant again. Alex elected to remain with her father.

Her father struck up a relationship with a woman named Kelly Myers, a civilian journalist reporting on Starfleet matters. Alex didn't like Kelly, finding her finicky and unpleasant. Soon after her mother's departure, Alex began to speak to others, and even to make friends at school, though the process was limited.

She was unhappy that her father was marrying Kelly, but happy that he was happy. They married in the shuttlebay, Alex was the ring bearer, and cut up and glued her dress into what looked more like a starfleet uniform a few minutes before walking down the aisle. Nobody was angry, a few people laughed.

As a child Alex spent much of her free time in Engineering, always fascinated by the great machines and the work ethic and friendships of the engineers. She also struck up a friendship of sorts with the ships Vulcan Assistant Chief of Security, who was patient and helpful to the girl.

In 2373 with war breaking out, the Scorpius was assigned to another crew, Captain Flynn and his entire command were transferred to the USS Mccoy, one of the new Olympic-class hospital ships.

About a week after school went back in Alex's fourteenth year, the McCoy was struck by a trio of Caradassian raiders striking deep into federation space. The ship was quickly disabled, and the small raiders slowly picked at the vessel. Alex was in her father's quarters at the time with her stepmother. The transparent titanium window was struck by a disruptor bolt, liquifying the surface and exposing the room to space.

Alex's stepmother was pulled off her feet and attempted to grab at the window to support herself, but she could only hold the molten tritanium for a moment before she lost her grip. Alex was saved by the door's emergency shutting mechanism closing on her bag while she held on for dear life. In shock she wandered to the bridge, but found was immediately told to leave by her father, in his stern but fair way. He instructed his Chief of Security to escort her to the Captain's Yacht, he pulled her out from under the rubble of the collapsing ship. As the Vulcan took the girl in the turbolift, the bridge was annihilated by a torpedo, and all present killed. Alex and her protector escaped in the yacht, as did much of the crew in escape pods and other shuttles.

Alex's only other family at the time was her imprisoned mother, who for obvious reasons could not raise the girl. Instead she came into the care of the ship's Vulcan Security Officer, who served as guardian for the girl for the next twelve years until she was old enough to join Starfleet. Upon her high school graduation, she attended Starfleet Academy, though her ambition was to remain on Earth as a planet-bound security officer, hoping to eventually transfer to Diplomatic Security. Alex graduated with honours, a few more friends, and her request fulfilled, earning her first posting as an Ensign with the federation Vice-President's family detail.

At the conclusion of the Vice President's term, Alex was disillusioned with diplomatic security and returned to regular fleet service and served aboard the USS Tyrus for three years, rising eventually to Lieutenant Junior Grade and Assistant Chief of Security. When the crew of the Tyrus transferred to the USS Valiant-B, Alex was promoted to Chief of Security and Tactical. She excelled in her assignments, earning her the attention of Command level officers, though she refused to stray from Security for the longest time.

Eventually, after a transfer to Starbase 135, Alex accepted the secondary responsibility of Chief Strategic Operations Officer for the troubled sector, forcing her to wear a red uniform (she didn't know that at the time.) Soon, Alex found herself consumed by Strat Ops, a prospect that fuelled her desire for command. As stimulating as she found command level discourse, however, she found herself unable to maintain her interest in her work in the way that the constantly changing challenge of security allowed, and hoped to return to a pure security/tactical role.

After an eventful year aboard Starbase 51 as Chief of Security in 2394, Alex was offered the position of First Officer and remained in service of the station's command crew until she was offered the role as Deep Space 13's XO.